A young wolf that broke out of a zoo in Daejeon, a city roughly 140 kilometres south of Seoul in central South Korea, has been recaptured after nine days on the run, bringing a dramatic and widely followed saga to a peaceful conclusion. Neukgu, a two-year-old male wolf, was tranquillised and captured just before 1 a.m. on Friday near an expressway interchange, following a tip-off the previous evening that he had been spotted near a park in the city. Authorities shot him with a tranquilliser dart from about 20 metres away and monitored him via drone as he entered a stable condition within roughly six minutes. He was then transported back to O-World, the zoo and theme park from which he had dug out of his enclosure on April 8.

Neukgu's recapture came only after several near-misses that kept the public on tenterhooks. Hundreds of rescue personnel, including firefighters, police officers, military drone operators, and volunteers, had been deployed over the course of the search. The wolf was spotted multiple times — including in a social-media video showing him scampering along a dark road illuminated by vehicle headlights — but managed to slip away each time. A tip received Thursday evening ultimately led authorities to the Anyeong-dong area of Daejeon, where the operation finally succeeded.

A medical examination following the capture found Neukgu's pulse and body temperature to be normal, and officials noted he appeared not to have lost much weight, suggesting he had been feeding during his time in the wild. An X-ray, however, revealed a 2.6-centimetre fish hook lodged in his stomach alongside a leaf and fish bones; the hook was removed through endoscopic surgery due to the risk of internal perforation, and Neukgu has since been recovering under monitoring.

The escape carried particular significance because Neukgu is part of a conservation programme at O-World aimed at preserving the Korean wolf, a subspecies once widespread across the Korean Peninsula but now considered extinct in the wild. His youth and life in captivity prompted concern among animal welfare groups that he would struggle to survive outdoors — concerns heightened by the fate of Porongi, a puma that escaped from the same zoo in 2018 and was killed during its recapture. The anxiety was felt at the highest levels: South Korean President Lee Jae-myung publicly posted his hopes for Neukgu's safe return. During the nine days, the wolf's story inspired widespread public affection — and even a cryptocurrency meme coin whose creators dubbed him a "symbol of independence."

Daejeon Mayor Lee Jang-woo thanked citizens and rescue workers nationwide while also apologising to residents who had feared for their safety. He pledged to overhaul animal welfare and safety measures at O-World to prevent a repeat incident, saying he would "promote a love for animals" as part of the park's reorganisation process.